Raison D'être
by ClaudiaRain
Summary: Parker's happy for the first time in a long time...and no one understands why Nate is so unhappy about that. Nate/Parker
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Raison D'être

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Leverage or its characters and I make no profit from this.

**Spoilers:** None. This belongs only to the universe in my head, and has nothing to do with what's going on in the show. I also make no claims as to whether or not it's in character.

**Pairing:** Nate/Parker

**Author's note: **I do still write, but now I work full time so it's harder. I recently found this on my computer; it was written back before I had 40 hour weeks. I thought the few other N/P fans out there might enjoy it along with me.

This is dedicated to **Leverage3621 **who inspired me with her last story. **Part 1 of 3.**

**XXXXXX**

It had been three weeks. _Three interminable weeks. _Nate couldn't believe Parker had lasted that long with anyone. And the fact that he hated the guy on top of that? It was simply infuriating.

"I'm sick of your 'advice,' Nate," Parker complained. "Especially when it involves breaking into the apartment of the person I'm dating. Why can't you ever say anything nice about Lance?"

Nate didn't bother telling her it was because he didn't trust him. Besides, he thought breaking into Lance's apartment was, at the very least, crucial in determining the true character of the man.

"Nate," Sophie said, "you need to stop being so critical all the time. It's a very unflattering characteristic."

He narrowed his eyes at her. Why was she never on his side? Instead of trying to talk to Sophie, he turned back to Parker. "I'm not saying break up with him, I'm only saying to…take things slowly. Get to know him, Parker."

"I already know him quite well," she said succinctly. And it was true…at least in terms of how well you could know _anyone_ after three weeks. Why was he trying to ruin this for her? The first ounce of happiness she'd had in – she couldn't say how long. Did Nate exist solely to make the rest of them miserable? Sometimes it seemed that way.

"He's _French_, Parker!" Nate exclaimed, as if that were a reason not to trust him, or something.

"And?" She demanded, inordinately happy when he didn't have anything else to add. "He's a _nice _guy. Do you have something against them?"

"Not at all, I mean, _I'm _a nice guy!" The looks he received from Parker and Sophie at that statement told him they might not agree. He should have realized, by now, they wouldn't show any common sense on the subject. "Parker, all I'm saying is to be careful. Look out for yourself."

"I've been doing that forever," she said, somewhat bitterly, "I don't need you to remind me."

He threw up his hands in a symbol of defeat. "Fine, go ahead, don't listen to me. What's the worst that could happen? Yeah, go ahead and get as serious with him as you possibly can. He could be a criminal, for all we know, but who cares."

"You mean a criminal…like us?" She asked, as he didn't answer. She honestly had no idea why he was acting this way. Ever since she'd started seeing Lance, he'd disapproved, with critical comments every day, about faults that were mainly a product of Nate's imagination. "I have to go or else I'll be late meeting him for dinner," Parker said, turning to the other woman in the room. "Sophie, please try to talk some sense into him?" With that she left, sparing Nate one more annoyed glance before leaving.

"I don't know why I have to be the peacekeeper," Sophie complained, once Parker had shut the door behind her.

"You don't," Nate said, irritated. "Parker's making her own bad decisions. Let her make them. She'll learn soon or later."

Sophie mentally rolled her eyes; she'd been hearing variations of that same line for weeks now. She didn't know what Nate's problem was with Lance, but she wished he'd get over it already, because she was damn sick of listening to him complain. She turned the volume up on the TV, hoping he'd take the hint and stop talking.

Another fifteen minutes passed with Nate tapping his foot impatiently and Sophie trying as hard as possible to ignore him. Finally he jumped up. "I'm hungry, let's go to dinner."

"Really? Didn't you eat like two hours ago?"

"So what? It was like…an appetizer. I want to go somewhere nice."

"You never want to go anywhere nice," Sophie said, not taking her eyes off the TV.

He'd already gotten their coats. "Can't two friends go out to have a nice dinner in a nice restaurant without one of them grilling the other about it?"

"Not when it's us," Sophie told him. He really should have seen that answer coming.

In response he held her coat out and waited.

"Fine," she said, "but on one condition."

He hesitated only a few seconds. "Alright."

"If we go out, we're going to _talk_, Nate. Have you noticed we don't talk much anymore? You never open up to me."

"There's a reason for that," he muttered as she took her coat and put it on.

While they walked down to the street, he checked his phone. She guessed he was looking for nice restaurants in the area.

"Where are we going?" She asked as he hailed a cab.

"L'Espalier," he said, both to her and the cab driver.

"How are we going to get in there without reservations at this time of night?" Sophie asked. "Are you going to make me seduce the maître d'?"

"Only if you want to," he smirked.

Since it was a Wednesday night, it turned out that it wasn't as busy as Sophie had thought. She waited while Nate slipped the maître d' a fifty and watched while they had a conversation that Sophie thought was a bit too long. Was she forgetting something important? It wasn't her birthday, and she didn't know why else Nate would be requesting special accommodations. She'd figure it out eventually, she was sure. He _had _promised they would talk tonight.

They were led to a small, intimate table near the back of the restaurant. Despite how many diners were present, they were pretty well-hidden. She enjoyed the sense of privacy. After they were told the specials, the waiter disappeared to get the wine Nate requested.

"This is actually very nice, Nate," Sophie was strangely impressed – which made her immediately suspicious. "You never go to this much trouble when we go out."

He appeared uncomfortable at her words. "I told you I wanted to have a nice dinner."

They made small talk for a few minutes until the waiter brought their wine and poured them each a glass. Sophie felt something was off, though. Nate wasn't acting like himself. Coming to this expensive restaurant was an aberration in and of itself – to have him acting bizarre only heightened her sense that something was wrong.

Come to think of it, he'd been acting strange the entire night, back to before they even left his apartment. On top of that, he kept looking around the restaurant, as if waiting for something. He couldn't be… "Nate, this isn't a romantic dinner, is it?"

He nearly choked on his wine. "What? No! God no!"

"It's okay, Nate," she said, reaching over to pat his hand reassuringly. "It takes a lot to get over me, I understand."

"No, Sophie, it's not what you think," he tried, but she wasn't listening to him.

"Take as much time as you need. Granted, it's been a long time already, but…I don't blame you. Really, I'm not mad."

"Sophie –"

"It's just that bringing me here, going to the trouble to make it a romantic evening, it's a bit over the top, Nate. Maybe you should be focusing on someone else? Have you thought about dating again? It might help you get over –"

"Sophie!" He yelled. "I'm not interested in you!"

She drew back, offended. "Be a little more vehement."

"I didn't mean it like that," he explained. "It's just…didn't we put that issue to rest over a year ago?"

"Exactly," she said. "Which is why I had to bring it up. I can tell something's going on, Nate. I mean you brought me out to this fancy restaurant, and you're not yourself." Even as she spoke, he glanced around again. "What do you keep looking for?"

He turned back to her immediately. "Nothing. Let's order."

She let it go – for the moment. They both decided on their entrées and after they'd placed their order, silence fell over the table. Usually she and Nate could settle into comfortable silence. They weren't the type to always need to talk about random things, and she found it strange that, suddenly, the silence between them felt unnatural.

"I'm going to wash my hands," she said. "When I get back, we are going to talk."

"Wait, Sophie –" he reached out to try and stop her but she had already stood. It was too late.

"That's strange," Sophie commented, leaning back down to speak in his ear. "Parker and Lance are over there."

"What? Where?" He asked, in an entirely unconvincing way, which Sophie obviously noticed.

"Oh my god!" She gasped, quickly dropping back into her seat. "Nathan Ford! Why did you bring me here? So you could spy on them?"

"No!" He argued. "Keep your voice down, they might hear us."

"Nate." Her tone was deadly and he immediately knew that his promise earlier to talk to her was going to be one he sorely regretted. "How did you find them? Parker didn't tell us where she was going – wait, your phone. You tracked her!"

How could he deny something that was completely true? "Um…no, I didn't?"

"Nate!" She yelled, ignoring his attempts to shush her again. "What is wrong with you?"

He had to get her on his side before she made an even bigger scene. "Okay, I admit it. I can track all of you by your cell phones."

"Does she know this?"

"You didn't, so I'm guessing no. Then again, with Parker, who knows?"

"That still doesn't explain why we're here," Sophie said. If he'd known she'd be this upset, he would have considered explaining his plan to her beforehand. Then again, if he'd done so, she probably would have refused to come.

Nate really didn't find it fair he had only a few minutes to explain before Sophie stormed out – or worse, over to Parker's table. "I have a bad feeling about this guy, and I tried to talk to her about it, but she wouldn't listen to me! Therefore, I've had to resort to these types of measures to keep an eye on her."

"Come on," she sighed.

"Really, Sophie, the guy's creepy! You can't deny it."

"From where I'm sitting, _you're _the creepy one," she pointed out. "Nate, this is stalking!"

"No, it's not," he insisted, "we just happened upon the same restaurant where Parker and Lance were having dinner. That's not unusual."

"You're right, that's not unusual – if it were _true_! You planned this whole thing. You followed her, and now you're spying on her."

Of course Sophie was only focusing on the negative aspect of things. "It's for her own good," he insisted, glancing around Sophie to where Parker was laughing along with Lance at their table on the other side of the room. God, he hated that guy.

"And to think I believed you when you said you wanted to spend a nice evening with me," she threw her napkin at him, just barely missing his glass of wine.

"Soph, I'm sorry I lied to you," he said, contritely.

She heard, from his tone, that he was sincere. That didn't mean she would automatically forgive him though. Wait a minute… "Your discussion with the maître d', you were asking for a table where you could watch her, weren't you?"

He may as well admit it, since she'd already figured it out. "In my defense, after everything I already did tonight, how can you find that any more objectionable?"

"Your defense is that...you've already done so many questionable things tonight, I should overlook it? That's a terrible defense," she told him.

He shrugged. "I didn't claim it was any good."

"She's gonna find out, Nate. Maybe you're forgetting that she's clueless about some things, but not observational skills! I bet she spotted us the minute we came in the room."

He hadn't really thought about that, but Sophie did have a good point. Still, maybe they'd gotten lucky. "I think if she had seen us, she would have come over by –"

"How can I help you folks this evening?" Parker asked cheerfully as she stood next to their table.

Sophie's eyes widened in question and Nate shook his head. He hadn't seen her come over, either.

"Wow, Parker, strange running into you here!" Sophie tried, feigning surprise.

"Yeah, um, do you work here?" Nate asked.

"Oh, this little act you two are doing, that's sweet," Parker said. The saccharine disappeared from her voice as she dropped to her knees next to them at the edge of the table, so they wouldn't be as easily overheard. "What are you two doing here?" She hissed.

"We're out to dinner," Sophie said innocently. "Why are you here?"

"Don't give me that. You two followed me, didn't you?" She glanced back and forth between them as they both talked over each other, trying to deny it.

Sophie was more insistent in her denials, and Parker thought she sounded guilty. Nate, however, couldn't look her in the eye.

"No…not both of you. _You_!" She said, turning to Nate. "I should have known, after all your 'warnings' about Lance. You think you know everything, and now what? You're treating me like a child by following me around? Keeping tabs on me? You're both better than that."

"Hey, I'm trying to help you," Nate told her. "Parker, something about him doesn't feel right."

He sounded genuinely concerned, worried even. Her voice softened slightly in response. "He's a good guy, Nate. Maybe you don't think so, but that's not your decision to make."

"If you would let me explain –" he began, but as with every other time he tried, she didn't want to hear it.

"I'm still mad at you. Both of you," she added, turning to Sophie.

"I was brought into this against my will," Sophie exclaimed. "Don't blame me for being dragged into stalking you."

Parker sighed in frustration and stood up again. "I'll let it go this time, but you two better finish your meal and then leave. So help me, Nate, if I see you hanging around outside my building or –"

"Parker, if you'd look at this rationally –" he tried.

"No," she hissed. "No, Nate, you do not get to talk to me about _rationality_! You're practically a step away from a restraining order, so I think you better follow my advice. Which is to leave me alone, from now on."

He knew he should simply agree with her, whether he meant it or not. But for some reason… "I'm sorry, Parker, I just can't do that."

She honestly didn't know what to say to that. She settled for grabbing the arm of the nearest waiter. "My _friends _here have offered to pay my bill for tonight, isn't that generous of them?" She nodded to Nate and Sophie.

"It certainly is, ma'am," he said, glancing at Nate who sighed and nodded. The waiter went off to change their bills, and Parker returned to her table with Lance. Nate wondered if that was a sign of her giving in – or of getting ready to call the police.

Sophie didn't want to wait around to find out, as she flagged down their waiter and told him to bring their meals to go.

"Hmm, Sophie," Nate said examining the bill they got a few minutes later, "here you go."

"You are not serious," she cried, "you want _me_ to pay? For _your_ crazy little excursion?"

"I'll pay you back," he waved her off, "just tell Hardison to take it from an expense account."

"I am _never _going anywhere with you again," she swore, practically throwing a credit card at their flustered waiter.

"Why is everyone in such a bad mood tonight?" He called after her as she swept out of the restaurant. His eyes wandered back to Parker and Lance, who looked as sickeningly happy as they had earlier in the night. And now _he _was paying for it.

The only consolation he had was that it wouldn't last long, if he had anything to say about it.

**XXXXXX**

TBC - 2 more parts, posted as soon as I subject them to my editing, which shouldn't be long. The story is already done.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

Author's Note: **Part 2 of 3.**

**XXXXXX**

"It's a feeling," Nate said, pacing restlessly. The room got smaller with every circular route he took around it.

Hardison warily watched him continue around the room. "Nate, come on, sit down."

"Since when do we take action against someone based on a _feeling_?" Sophie asked, still angry at Nate about their expedition a few days before, but at least she was talking to him again.

He didn't know why they couldn't see what was right in front of them. "What is it about this guy? It's not only Parker he's got brain-washed, it's every single one of you." He turned to Sophie, "I mean, you're practically in love with him."

"I am not! I simply complimented Parker on landing such a handsome man. The fact that I said I wish I met him first has absolutely nothing to do with –"

He'd already turned to Hardison, "And you, what's with fawning all over him?"

"We share a similar interest in technology which none of you care about, last I checked. Why is it horrible if I ask him what he thinks of the idea of inserting microchips directly into the human brain? It's gonna happen, by the way."

Nate turned to Eliot. "As for you…I don't know because you haven't said anything on the subject. What do you think of Lance?"

Eliot shrugged. "I don't like him."

"Man, you don't like anyone," Hardison pointed out.

Nate didn't care about that, jumping on Eliot's statement as if it was the only proof anyone needed about Lance Durand's untrustworthiness. "See? Why don't you like him, Eliot?"

"I can't put my finger on it," Eliot said. "But I'm certainly not obsessed like you are, Nate. I mean not to the point that I want to destroy the guy's life, or that I'm going to follow him and Parker around the city. I'm surprised you haven't tried to bribe the doorman of her building to give you information on her. Don't think I didn't see you going through her phone yesterday."

"She left it lying around!"

"You took it from her pocket!"

Nate thought for a moment. "That doorman thing is a good idea, thanks Eliot."

"You're not helping, Eliot," Sophie complained. "Why don't you give him an outline of more borderline illegal things he can do to further drive Parker away from us?" She turned to Nate. "Because you know that's what you're doing, right? If you keep being critical of him, she's going to stop wanting to see you, and by extension, us. She could quit."

Nate considered that an absolute impossibility. "She's not going to quit. I won't let her."

"What, are you going to tie her up and force her to work with us?" Hardison said, laughing, then abruptly stopped. "That wasn't a suggestion."

Nate raised his voice to get their attention. "You trust me on everything we do, but you won't trust me on this? Why is this different?"

Hardison and Eliot exchanged worried looks, both wondering if either one would be brave enough to bring up a subject they'd only discussed outside of Nate's presence. Eliot nodded for Hardison to do it, and Hardison vigorously shook his head in refusal. It quickly escalated to a shoving match.

"You two want to share?" Nate asked.

Eliot let Hardison out of a headlock and the hacker quickly crossed to the other side of the room, exaggeratedly rubbing his neck as he talked. "Look, Nate, uh…we were talking a little while ago…is it possible that your hatred for Lance isn't about him but about, uh, you?"

"What do you mean by that?" Nate asked, confused.

Hardison looked extremely reluctant to clarify, and Eliot certainly wasn't going to say anything. Sophie seemed to understand what they meant, though.

"Nate, I think what they're trying to say is that…we know you tend to…look out for Parker. Are you jealous that she's spending all her time with him now?"

"What? That's ridiculous," he scoffed. "You're making it sound like I love her."

When Sophie only raised her eyebrows in question and the other two men watched him expectantly, he internally sighed and gripped the back of a kitchen chair. "I do love Parker, but as a friend. Like we all love each other as friends."

"Really, man? That's – that means a lot," Hardison said, patting Nate on the back, who shot him a look of irritation in return. "I love you, too. Like a brother, you know?"

"Hardison, control yourself," Eliot said, finally deciding he may as well speak up since the others had broached the topic to Nate. "You know we all care about Parker, so if you really think that looking deeper into this guy is what's best for her, then I'm game."

"Right on, solidarity!" Hardison held out his fist to Eliot who merely shook his head, and Hardison put his hand down. "So much for loving each other, huh Eliot? It's nice to know how you feel."

"I've tried to talk to her," Nate said, anger coming through in his voice no matter how much he tried to mask it. "She ignores me, or comes up with excuses."

Sophie crossed her legs and folded her hands in her lap. Sadly, she was the only voice of reason left anymore. "Alright, Nate, maybe you have a valid concern but I'm only going to help you with a plan if you have any solid evidence that Lance doesn't have pure motives. You 'feeling' that he doesn't is not proof enough."

"How's this?" Nate asked, ticking off items on his fingers: "He showed up right after our last con. He won't talk about himself to us more than vague details. He has no clear background Hardison can determine. And he's acting way too serious with Parker for someone who's only known her a couple of weeks."

Sophie wondered what it would take to snap Nate out of his thinking that Lance was some sort of evil mastermind out to use Parker for nefarious reasons. Maybe if they agreed to play along with him, he'd finally see that Lance was a regular guy. Personally, Sophie was happy for Parker. A stable, adult relationship might help her socialize with other people better. Maybe she'd finally be happy.

"I guess you have a couple valid points," Sophie said, more to humor him than anything else. "Since you aren't going to forget about it, I'll agree to this on one condition: that if whatever you're trying to prove about Lance doesn't come to fruition, you agree to drop this and accept the fact that he's a decent guy who likes Parker, and that's it. I won't continue to keep trying to prove he has ulterior motives if this plan of yours shows that he doesn't, the first time around."

Nate thought about her point. She made sense, and he had to admit that it'd probably be healthiest to simply agree with her – if Lance didn't seem bad after he pulled this off, he should let it go. However, he couldn't do that. He'd agree with Sophie, but she didn't have to know that he'd do whatever it took to show Parker what the man's motives truly were. And he was entirely convinced Lance wanted something from her. More than that, he was terrified that Parker would end up deeply hurt as a result. With each passing day it got worse, with her liking Lance and trusting him more. As it was, it would be bad enough to show her his true colors now – what if it took weeks or months longer? She could be devastated. She had enough issues with trust as it was, and this could stop her from trusting someone else for the rest of her life.

If he had his way, that would _never _happen, because whether she knew it or not, there were people she could unconditionally trust: him and the rest of their team. He had no doubt she'd be furious with him for this in the short run, but in the long term? She'd know it was for the best, and she'd be grateful. He had to believe that. Because if he didn't, what was he doing this for?

"Fine, Sophie, I agree to your condition."

She nodded and held out her hand. When they shook, he gripped hers too tightly, and she knew he was trying to tell her how serious he was about this.

"What's the plan, then?" Hardison asked.

"You might not like it," he said, holding up his hand to Sophie when she automatically opened her mouth to protest. "Because you'll argue this could hurt her, but I counter that argument with this – if it hurts her temporarily by letting her know that Lance is the kind of man I think he is, wouldn't you rather she experience the pain of finding out now instead of down the road, when she's in much deeper?"

Sophie really couldn't argue with that. While she might not agree with Nate's assessment of Lance, she did care very much about what happened to Parker, and she'd spare her the most pain if she could help it. "Tell me what it is, and I'll tell you if I agree."

"He showed up three weeks ago, just after we pulled off that Renoir heist," he reminded them, then explained his theory. They'd recently 'acquired' a stolen Renoir painting, and the plan was to return it to the museum from which it had been stolen two years before – except complications meant they had to hold onto it for longer than they'd planned.

It was currently in Nate's bedroom, and, in fact, warning bells had first gone off for Nate when Lance had 'casually' mentioned the recent theft to Parker. Nate was convinced the man had done his homework on her and was sent to retrieve the painting – whether at the behest of the rightful owners (the museum) or the man who'd had it stolen from that museum, he couldn't say. Either way, it wasn't hard to connect the dots – learning that one of the best thieves had been in town the night the Renoir was taken? It was more likely than not that she'd done it, and if she hadn't, Nate was betting that Lance thought she could lead him to whoever did.

After he'd explained his theory to the rest of the team, he was surprised to find they were much more tolerant of his suspicions.

"I honestly don't know if that's completely paranoid or if you have Lance figured out," Eliot said. "I'm willing to test it, though."

"We give Parker a fake copy of the painting. If it's what he's after, Lance will be able to determine it's a fake, and reveal his true intentions. If he's not involved in any way, it won't matter. Unless he tries to turn her in, thinking he's come in contact with an art thief. In which case we'd stop him, regardless."

"Why would we be giving Parker the painting to begin with? And why not give her the real one, anyways?" Hardison asked.

"I don't know, we'll make up a reason. Safekeeping or something. It's too risky to give her the real one if that's what he's after." He paused and looked around the living room at each of them. "Are you with me on this?"

Sophie sighed heavily, still half-convinced Nate was out of his mind, but she had to admit that after he'd laid everything out, it was _possible _to see Lance in a suspicious light. Now she wouldn't be able to stop wondering until they tested this. She only hoped it didn't turn into a regular thing, with Nate always being suspicious of people they dated.

Though come to think of it, he'd never acted this way with anyone that Eliot or Hardison had dated. Or even any man she'd been seeing. She turned back to him with a critical eye as he laid out the plan to Eliot and Hardison.

Sophie wondered if this would turn into something she ended up regretting. She only hoped Parker didn't get too hurt, no matter the outcome. At the very least, she'd be grateful that Nate was no longer following the other woman around. After all, his behavior the past few weeks made it seem as if _he _were the one with a problem, not Lance.

**XXXXXX**

It hadn't taken them long to get a fake version of the Renoir, and Nate had given it to Parker to 'keep hidden' while his apartment was 'inspected by management.' Thankfully, Parker never dug too much into things, and Nate never lied to her (this time withstanding, that is), so she accepted his explanation without any argument.

They also knew she wasn't about to go showing it to Lance, which was where Hardison came in. Two days after Nate gave her the fake painting, Hardison went to retrieve it – right while Parker and Lance were having dinner in her apartment (it turned out Eliot's idea of bribing her doorman came in handy, and Nate was going to have a talk with him after this was over. Namely informing him that if he ever gave out information about her again – to anyone other than him – he'd suffer severely).

"Are you two in the middle of a romantic evening?" Hardison asked, peering around Parker when she answered her door. "My bad," he said, entering her apartment without an invitation as Parker glared daggers at him.

"What are you doing here, Hardison?" She asked, not bothering to keep her anger in check. "Did Nate send you? Because you can tell him that I don't find it amusing he would –"

"No, not quite," Hardison interrupted her. "Actually, he did send me, but not for the reason I'm sure you're thinking. I'm here to…take back that…item that he lent you." He made sure his voice carried across the room to where Lance was standing in the doorway to the dining area, pretending to give them privacy.

"What? Now?" She really couldn't believe this – trust Nate to have the worst timing ever. Though…he'd probably done this on purpose for some reason. She nodded subtly toward Lance. "Can't this wait, Hardison?"

"Uh, no it can't," Hardison lied. "We really need it now." He waved to Lance, as the other man politely waved back. "Sorry to interrupt your dinner."

"No problem," Lance said, watching with interest as Parker left the room. She came back with the painting, still in the brown paper which they'd wrapped it in before giving it to her. Hardison was glad she hadn't removed it – he had no doubt she'd have recognized the forgery in seconds.

He took it from her, gave his thanks, and then stumbled to the door. He was supposed to trip (Sophie had gone so far as to give him ten pointers on how to make a fall 'believable') but it turned out he didn't need any of them, as he dropped the painting of his own accord and barely caught himself from falling on top of it.

"Hardison!" Parker cried, rushing over to him.

"Wow, Parker, I didn't know you cared that much –" he stopped talking as she shoved him out of the way and picked up the painting, ripping off the paper to see if it had been damaged "– about me," he finished dryly.

"You're too clumsy," she scolded him as she confirmed the painting was still intact.

"What's that you've got there?" Lance asked, coming over to see what they were fussing over. He stopped mid-step when he saw what they were examining. "Is that…"

"Wait a minute," Parker said, confused. "Hardison, this –"

"Isn't ruined, despite my klutziness," he said quickly, grabbing it back from her and trying to wrap the paper back around it.

"I don't believe it," Lance whispered. "That's the Renoir that was stolen a few weeks ago. You took it. I was beginning to have my doubts, but…" he turned to Parker.

"What's going on here?" She asked, looking from Hardison to Lance. Something didn't feel right, and it wasn't just Hardison's suspicious retrieval of the painting while she was with Lance – who was now watching her with a mixture of regret and…triumph?

She watched in astonishment as Lance picked up the painting. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to take this."

"What?" Parker asked. "Is this a practical joke? Did the others put you up to this? Because it's not funny."

"Wait," Lance said, paying her no mind. "This isn't real!"

"What are you talking about? Of course it's real!" Parker burst out, as Hardison tried to stop her. She grabbed it from his hands and looked closer. "Hey, this isn't real!"

"What kind of game are you two playing?" Lance demanded.

"This isn't – I don't know what you're talking about," she said, staring at the painting as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. It definitely wasn't the same one she'd lifted four weeks earlier, but to the casual observer, it appeared nearly identical.

Which meant Lance was far from a casual observer.

She turned to him with growing suspicion and a sickening feeling as all of Nate's warnings to her came flooding back. He was never going to let her live this down. "Who are you?"

"Where's the real painting?" He said, in response, "I know you have it."

"Are you kidding me?" She said indignantly. "You need to leave."

He ignored her order. "I'm not leaving, not until I know what's going on here," he said.

"Drop the ruse," Hardison suggested, "because we know who you are. I admit I had my doubts at first, but Nate made a very convincing –" He stopped, glancing at Parker guiltily.

"I should have known he was behind this," she fumed. "This has Nathan Ford written all over it." She turned back to Lance who was watching her uneasily. She decided to play along with Hardison, though. "He's right, we know who you are, you may as well stop pretending."

Lance heaved a sigh and then reluctantly reached into his back pocket, pulling out a badge. "David Monroe, FBI."

**XXXXXX**

The third and final part will be up soon!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N:** 3 of 3. **

This took a little longer than I thought...where has all my free time gone? Oh yeah, to my job! Thanks to all who reviewed, put this story on alert, and added it to their favorites. I truly appreciate it.

**XXXXXX**

Hardison hadn't thought it was possible to be surprised even more than he already was, but that admission had him gaping at the other man. How had he missed this?

Parker grabbed his badge and studied it. Unfortunately, it appeared real. How had she missed this?

"I could keep lying to you, but since you've figured it out, there's no point. Therefore, I'm going to have to demand you return the real painting to me, and you may avoid federal charges."

"I don't have the real painting," Parker insisted. Truthfully, she was trying to wrap her mind around the fact that Lance – no, David – wasn't the man she thought he'd been. "It was all a lie. Everything. Wasn't it?"

"Parker –" He began, stepping toward her, but she backed away, shaking her head.

"No, stay away from me. You don't get to…" she swallowed, crossing her arms.

Hardison thought fast, trying to come up with an explanation the other man would buy. "You're right, we figured you out, and why you were here. This fake Renoir was merely to get you to reveal your cover, because if we confronted you, you would have denied it. Parker doesn't have the real painting, and you have no idea who does. I think your operation here has come to an end."

David glanced over at Parker, wondering if any part of what her friend had said was true; he sincerely doubted it. She wouldn't look at him, though.

"I think you need to leave," Hardison said.

David really had nothing to say to that, but he tried anyways. "I know you took that painting, I'm still going to prove it."

"Go ahead," Parker finally spoke, not intimidated by him in the slightest. She stepped forward until they were inches apart. "You have nothing on me. If you did, we wouldn't be standing here arguing, and we both know it."

"I'm truly sorry, Parker," he said, sighing, and she thought he sounded guilty. But was that just a ruse, like everything else? "I never meant for things to go this far, this was a simple assignment and once I got to know you…I'm genuinely sorry if I hurt you. I wish things had turned out different."

The entire world had shifted under her feet, and she was completely lost, but she had to ask. "Was everything fake? Everything you said to me?" She pitched her voice lower, unaware that Hardison could still hear her. "That you liked me and you wanted to know me better and you thought you could be with me for –" she broke off.

"I'm sorry," he repeated, "I am, but what did you really lose here?"

"What does that mean?" She demanded.

"Do you think if I was really Lance, that we would have lasted?" He asked.

Parker shrugged. They certainly hadn't been in love, but she'd gotten close to him and thought that maybe… "I don't want to talk about this anymore," she said. "This entire time…it was a lie to get close to me. You used me. I did nothing wrong and you used me." She ignored the fact that she was lying through her teeth about doing nothing wrong. He certainly didn't know that – if he did, she'd have been arrested by now.

"You have to admit," David went on, though she wished he'd shut up and leave, "there was always a part of you that was never here. I don't know where it was, but it wasn't with me."

"Guys, I know you're listening, feel free to come in at _any time_," Hardison hissed, wondering what was taking the others so long to show up. He'd no sooner finished talking than Eliot and Nate came in.

"If you have nothing on her, then you best get going," Eliot said, with an air of quiet menace.

David knew enough to recognize when the tide had turned, and besides that, he had nothing more to go on. Still, he couldn't simply give up. "Don't think this means you've won," he said, directing the words at Parker, who merely held his gaze without flinching. She was tough, he'd give her that. He couldn't decide if she was incredibly brave or incredibly stupid. "We all know that I know what you did. It's only a matter of time before I prove it." He thought she might give something away - flinch or step back or otherwise give him some indication that he was on the right track, but she was immovable.

Nate stepped forward and the look in his eyes made David involuntarily take a step backwards himself. "You have five seconds to get out of here, or I will ruin you," Nate whispered. "I don't care who you are. I will destroy your life."

David blinked, and resisted the urge to defend himself. For some reason, he fully believed what Nate told him. He glanced over at Parker, who was still frozen in place. And then, as he watched, she slightly relaxed and glanced back and forth between Nate and himself.

That was it, then. He'd been wondering.

Despite his best intentions, David felt slightly bad about the way things had played out, even if Parker _was _the one responsible for stealing the Renoir. "I'm sorry we didn't meet under other circumstances, Parker."

"Yeah, well I'm not," she said, gathering her courage as she came to stand next to her friends. "I never want to see you again."

"I can't promise that," he said, "because I'm still investigating you, and your friends." He glanced at the three men who seemed ready to force him out of the room if necessary. When he turned back to her, he smiled sadly. "Until, or if, we meet again, I wish you the best, Parker."

She couldn't say whether his words were sincere or not. She settled for looking somewhere past him, and waited until he was gone before turning back to the others watching her with various levels of concern. "This is the fun part," she said, as she started searching her apartment, the other three pitching in to help her sweep it for any bugs. After a meticulous search, they found nothing.

"He probably thought it was too dangerous to plant anything, at the risk that you might find it. Seeing as you're a master criminal and all," Hardison joked.

"Maybe it was enough for them to simply try and get you to reveal yourself," Eliot said.

"Or he isn't really FBI," Nate suggested. "Maybe that was a lie, too."

"I'll get to the bottom of it," Hardison assured them, as he and Eliot went to leave. Personally, he had his suspicions, and he was betting more than 90% that Lance Durand (or David Monroe) was not FBI. He noticed Nate wasn't following them. "Aren't you coming?" He asked his boss quietly.

"No, you two go ahead. I have to talk to Parker," he told them.

Hardison gave him a skeptical look but left along with Eliot. Nate waited until he heard Parker's front door shut before walking over to her sofa and making himself comfortable.

Parker sighed. "Why are you still here?"

"Talk to me," he said.

What did he really want her to say? That Lance had her completely convinced he was a nice, decent man, and she'd fallen for it, like a pathetic mark? That she'd allowed herself to succumb to such an obvious ploy? Her self-hatred was growing by the minute.

She started pacing back and forth in front of the sofa where he was sitting. "I trusted him. Why? I should know better, by now. I shouldn't trust anyone. It was stupid of me, Nate. I could have gotten us caught. Maybe I _have_! Maybe it's only a matter of time before he comes up with more evidence and uses it against us."

"Parker –" He began.

But she kept talking right over him. "I believed him. I believed every word out of his mouth. I'm so gullible. I always thought that it was _other _people who were gullible and I'd never fall into that category, and look what I did! I've been dating an _FBI agent_! Or someone who claims to be an FBI agent. Who knows who the hell he is? What is wrong with me, Nate?"

"Nothing is wrong with you," he told her. She wasn't listening.

"You were right. That's what you want to hear, isn't it? You were right about him from the beginning," she paused, steeling herself for a truth she didn't want to admit. "You were right in thinking that it was crazy to believe someone would love me for who I really am."

At her words, Nate leaned forward to grab her arm, stopping her in her tracks. "What?"

"It's why you were so skeptical about him, isn't it?" She forged on. "Because if someone cared about me, _truly _cared about me, there had to be another reason behind it. Something else they wanted…I'm never enough, not on my own. They always want something else." She shook her head, obviously remembering all the people in her past who had used her emotions to exploit her talents.

Nate was speechless, because that thought had honestly never crossed his mind. That Parker thought no one could ever genuinely love her pained him in an entirely unexpected way. He knew that he had to dispel her of the notion, and he also knew he had no idea how to accomplish that.

"If I'd listened to you a month ago we wouldn't be in this situation right now," she said, as his thoughts raced. "Why do you have to be right about _everything_? It's not fair, Nate, it really isn't…" she trailed off, lost in thought. "None of this is fair," she added, quietly, falling onto the sofa next to him.

He seized the opportunity to put his arms around her, taking her by surprise. Parker was confused, but leaned back into him, reveling in the rare contact. She never allowed herself to be close to anyone; it was easy to forget how much you could miss it. She waited for him to let go and move away again, and when he didn't, she breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing in his embrace. Still, she wondered what was going on with him lately. This wasn't the Nate she had always known.

"Parker," he said finally, finding it easier to talk when he didn't have to look her directly in the eyes, "I never even considered that you aren't worth loving. That's ridiculous. You are worth more than –" He broke off, taking a deep breath, but he never finished the thought. "My issues with Lance were based on other matters entirely."

She didn't quite believe it, but decided to humor him. "Like?"

"You didn't do anything wrong," he insisted, ignoring her question. "You trusted the wrong person, that's all."

She sort of laughed, closing her eyes and leaning her head back against his shoulder. She reached up to where one of his arms was circled under her neck and gripped it tighter than she should have. "Are you making excuses for me? I never thought I'd see the day. Where's the 'I told you so, Parker, you should have listened to me'?"

He had to smile at that. "Alright, maybe that's partly what I'm thinking." She froze at his response, but he merely hugged her tighter, reassuringly. "However, it's not your fault he targeted you."

"It's not fair," she said, in an uncharacteristic display of self-pity. "I trusted him, wouldn't it figure the one new person I decided was worth trusting – in I don't know how long – would turn out to be, possibly, an undercover FBI agent? He didn't want me, he wanted to string me up for a crime that I didn't – uh, that he can't prove I committed." She wondered when she'd gotten things so terribly wrong, and had a fleeting, impossible thought that she wished Nate would never let her go.

He shifted them so that her head was tucked underneath his, and stared across the room at her fireplace, trying to think of what would make her feel better. It was difficult, because the only thing he felt after Lance's revelation was relief. Relief that he'd been right about the man, and mostly, that Lance Durand, aka David Monroe, was no longer going to be part of Parker's life.

Why did he feel that way?

He'd never thought about it too closely before.

Now, alone with Parker in her apartment, he had to really look at himself, and his motivations. And though they might scare him, he could only imagine how _she _would react to them.

"Don't blame yourself," he told her.

"Why not?" She asked bitterly. At her words, he abruptly let go of her, thinking she wanted to get away from him. In response, she glanced over at him, confusion in her eyes, wondering if he was angry at her. He must have sensed her unspoken question, because he he smiled slightly and put his arm around her.

Parker closed her eyes. Wasn't this what he always did? Try to make her – no, all of them – feel better?

"It's not your fault," he said, and maybe that was the only reason she needed to forgive herself.

"How can you not resent me for putting our entire team in danger?" She argued, grateful for the fact that she didn't have to face him straight on. She didn't know if she could look in his eyes at the moment, for the guilt and shame she felt. "I could have given everything away without realizing it. What if I'd –"

"You didn't," he said quietly, and kissed the top of her head as if to cement his words. Her breath caught for a half second, and she knew she was allowing herself to be too comforted by him. He was trying to make her feel better and that was it. That was _it_.

He'd do the same for Sophie. Or Hardison, or Eliot (though he probably wouldn't hug the latter two while he was doing so).

"You can't know that," she insisted, wanting to find something that he couldn't refute. From looking at him, though, she knew he couldn't be swayed. She didn't know _why_, but she knew he would never agree with her on this point.

He would never blame her for this. It could be entirely her fault, and he still wouldn't blame her.

The thought made it impossible to swallow.

Apparently he felt that changing tactics was the better option. "Parker, what I do know is that I trust you. Do you trust me?"

She shut her eyes, merely to think – _not _to stop any tears. "You know I trust you," she whispered.

"No, I don't know that," he said, letting go of her. She felt momentarily bereft, as if she were adrift at sea during a storm, until he put his hands on her shoulders and made her turn to face him. "Look at me and say it," he ordered.

She reluctantly met his eyes. "Do you know how hard this is for me?"

He searched her eyes for a minute before speaking. "Yes, I do know how hard this is for you. Don't you get it, by now? I understand you, Parker. I understand everything about you."

"How?" She demanded. "How is that possible?"

He knew how upset she was becoming and leaned forward, running his hands down her arms in an attempt to calm her. "Think about it. I chased you when you were a criminal, which meant I'd studied your crimes. I knew your background. And we've worked together for a few years now, so I've learned even more about you during that time. I _know _you. And whether you'll admit it or not, you know me, too. So _you _tell _me_ – am I telling the truth right now?"

She gripped his hands and considered – really considered – what he was saying. He must have known what her answer would be. "Yes, you're telling the truth."

He waited until she had relaxed and leaned back from him a few inches. Once she was looking at him again, he had to tell her, no matter what her reaction might be. "Parker, why do you think I was so against you seeing Lance – or rather, David?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "Because you were afraid I'd quit our team?"

"That was part of it," he acknowledged. "But it was more than that. Parker, I was afraid of losing you. Not from our team, but from…" He didn't know quite how to word it.

"From…" she waited impatiently, and then, on his face, she saw it. She _saw _it. "From you? You thought I'd leave you."

"Not that I ever really had you," he admitted. "But I knew once you were with Lance that it might be forever and that made me – well, you saw how it made me."

"It made you follow me around the city," she said, as more reasons dawned on her, one by one. They were incredibly obvious, now that she looked back on it. He'd been jealous. And she'd completely missed it. Then again, she'd missed that her boyfriend was possibly an FBI agent, which meant that she was missing a lot of things lately. "Nate, I'm…"

"Sorry?" He guessed, laughing bitterly. "It's okay, Parker. I know you don't feel the same way. That's completely on me. The only thing I wanted was to make sure you were with someone who truly appreciated you. I knew it wasn't Lance, and that's why I've been trying to get between you two. However, I honestly hope that in the future you find him – whoever he is. I want you to be happy."

"You – you…" she tried desperately to understand what Nate was saying. That he knew she didn't love him, but he hoped she'd find someone she loved one day? How dare he make that decision for her? "You don't know what you're talking about," she said furiously, shifting away from him on the couch so that a few feet separated them.

He leaned back, surprised at her reaction. He'd known she would probably be upset at his revelation, but this fury was unprecedented. "Parker, I didn't mean –"

"You know what's best for me, right?" She jumped off the couch so that she could have the height advantage in staring him down. "You'll make my decisions for me. I get it."

"Parker –"

"You might run this team," she told him, on the verge of shouting, "but you don't run my life! You don't get to make all my decisions for me. Do you get that? For someone who claims to understand me so well, do you _understand _that?"

He stood as well, with absolutely no idea what to do or say to calm her down. "I don't –"

"I _love _you," she yelled, giving him a shove. "What do you say to _that_?"

"I –" He broke off, only able to stare at her, stunned. He had _nothing_ to say that.

"Am I crazy? Or delusional? Or wasting my time? Am I making another horrible decision just like Lance – I mean, David? Go on, tell me, Nate. I'm dying to know," she said, with such scorn that he gathered she wouldn't be open to rational discussion if he tried.

So he kissed her instead.

She gasped, momentarily surprised at his action, then met him with equal passion. There was no way she was letting him win – though she soon realized that maybe they were both winners in this one. Their kiss went from aggressive to passionate to tender within a few dozen heartbeats. He told her more how he felt about her with one kiss than she'd learned on the subject in two years.

"You…love me," she said, breathlessly, when he broke away.

"You finally figured it out?" He asked, watching her warily, still on edge from her anger a few moments before.

How could she ever explain this? Words didn't seem enough as she watched him. What she felt for him – it overcame her in a sudden, sharp wave. Maybe it had always been there, buried away, but she'd only just realized it. She couldn't find one part of her that didn't want him (need him?) with a desperation that terrified her. "I'm in love with you," she said, with no small amount of worry.

"Good, because I'm in love with you too," he whispered, lightly kissing her lips, and her jawline.

She momentarily became distracted before forcing herself back to reality. "I mean, as in, forever, Nate."

She really had no idea what he might say in response to that, as he paused and looked her in the eyes. "That's good, Parker, because that's exactly how I feel."

She inhaled deeply, still needing confirmation. "Really? Because if this didn't work…you know if – what I'm saying is we have to work together, and if things didn't work out –"

"Parker," he said, taking both her hands, "I want to be with you. Is that enough?"

"I want to be with you, too," she said, pulling him closer and kissing him once more. She had to wonder if he'd be so eager to be with her if he knew, exactly, what she was feeling.

After all, it scared _her_. Logically, then, wouldn't it scare him even more?

Except…maybe he didn't think that way.

"Parker," he said, "don't let him dictate the way you judge everyone. You're right that you shouldn't trust everyone, but there are some people you can trust. Like me. And the rest of our team." He stopped trying to convince her, surprised when she hugged him in response. He hugged her back, praying she didn't take the incident with David as proof that everyone in the world was untrustworthy.

"I do trust you, Nate," she said finally, looking up at him and hoping he believed her.

"I'm glad," he whispered, thanking whatever God there might be that she had listened to him, and believed him, and loved him.

"This means you don't have to follow me around Boston anymore," she teased.

"I think I might still do that, for an entirely different reason," he laughed, kissing her again, and she thought that she might not mind if he followed her around forever.

It would have been a scary thought, indeed…if she hadn't wanted him to do just that.

**XXXXXX**

Fin. Hope you enjoyed. =)


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